Punjab: Pastor Bajinder Singh sentenced to life imprisonment in 2018 rape case

A court in Punjab's Mohali on Tuesday sentenced self-styled pastor Bajinder Singh to life imprisonment in a 2018 rape case.

The court of Additional District and Sessions Judge (ADSJ) Vikrant Kumar pronounced the verdict, PTI reported.

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Bajinder was pronounced guilty on March 28 under sections 376 (rape), 323 (punishment for voluntary causing hurt) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code.

The case was registered on a complaint filed by a woman at the Zirakpur police station in Mohali in 2018. Tight security arrangements were made at the court complex before the pronouncement of the verdict on Tuesday.

“I want at least 20 years of imprisonment to him. He knows the law very well and does all this crime willingly. I want women to come out and speak freely about him. They should not get scared anymore,” she told ANI.

Followers used to call him ‘Papa Ji’

Pastor Bajinder Singh sexual assault case victim's lawyer, Advocate Anil Sagar said, “He was popular as a spiritual leader. His followers used to call him 'Papa ji'. When this kind of crime is committed by such a person, an exemplary punishment must be given. We are satisfied with the quantum of sentence, which is life imprisonment. He has to stay behind bars until his last breath.”

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Earlier, Punjab Police had registered an FIR against Pastor Bajinder Singh after a complaint was filed by the woman alleging assault on her. The incident reportedly took place after a prayer session, where the survivor claimed that she, along with others, was mistreated and physically assaulted.

Narrating her ordeal, the survivor alleged that she was attacked when she tried to intervene in an assault on another individual present at the gathering.

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“When I stopped him (Pastor Bajinder Singh) from hitting a person present there, he hit me with a notebook. At the time, my 1.5-year-old daughter was with me. He also badly hit the boy present there. The government should probe if the footage was real or AI-generated. After this, I resigned from the Church. He also threatened me. I had gone there out of devotion...” she stated.

In his defence, the self-styled Pastor Baljinder Singh had said that the allegations against him were false. He claimed that the girl was suffering from an 'evil spirit,' experienced fits, and came to him for prayer. However, on Friday, the court found him guilty and sentenced him to life.

(With inputs from agencies)